Ashton Eaton sets decathlon points world record

Ashton Eaton set a personal best in the exhausting 1,500-metre finale and is now the world-record holder in the decathlon — the cream of the crop in the event that determines the world's best athlete.

Eaton finished with 9,039 points in the U.S. Olympic trials Saturday to beat Roman Sebrle's 11-year-old mark by 13 points.

"This is just crazy," Eaton said.

The 24-year-old University of Oregon product needed a time of four minutes, 16.37 seconds in the 1,500 to break the mark at the school's Hayward Field. He finished in 4:14.48.

When it was over, Eaton bent down and put his hands on his knees, then brought them up to cover his mouth — elated and shocked all at the same time.

Eaton was greeted after the finish by his mother and his fiancée, heptathlete Brianne Thiesen from Humboldt, Sask.

A few minutes later, he took the mini American flag he'd been handed as a member of the U.S. Olympic team and stabbed it into the turf near the scoreboard on the field that displayed his accomplishment: "World Record Decathlon. Ashton Eaton. 9,039 points."

"I wanted it to be a special event because this is my home state, my hometown, my home university," he said. "And just from the start, I just wanted to perform well."

What to do for an encore?

We'll see in six weeks in London, where he'll go in as the favorite, along with the man he beat, defending world champion Trey Hardee, who finished 656 points back.

"Going into London, I'm not going to change a thing," Eaton said. "Clearly."

Defending Olympic champion Bryan Clay fell during the hurdles. He finished 12th.

Clay was the gold medalist in the Beijing Games, becoming the first American to win the multi-event since Dan O'Brien in 1996, but has been hampered by injuries in recent years.

Eaton opened the event by setting world-best marks for the decathlon in his first two events, the 100 (10.21 seconds) and long jump (27 feet). He had a mark of 46 feet, 7 1/4 inches in shot put, cleared 6-8 3/4 in the high jump and ran the 400 in a driving rainstorm in 46.70 seconds to finish the first day in the mix for the world record.

He returned Saturday to equally dreary weather, but didn't slip. The results: 13.70 seconds in the 110 hurdles, 140-5 inches in the discus, and 17-4 1/2 in the pole vault. His javelin throw of 193-1 meant he would need to top his personal best by at least 2.57 seconds in the 1,500. The sun finally peaked out shortly before Eaton made it to the starting line, illuminating his green and black shirt and neon-orange shoes. He stayed on pace the entire time and crossed the line with nearly two seconds to spare.

Felix in dead heat limbo

A run-off for the final spot? Maybe a game of rock, paper, scissors?

With no protocol in place, there’s no guessing how they’ll break the tie for the third and final spot in the 100 metres.

Allyson Felix and Jeneba Tarmoh finished in a dead heat for the last U.S. spot in the London Games at the Olympic trials, each finishing in 11.068 seconds.

USA Track and Field officials were meeting late into the night to sort out how to break this sort of tie and who will join Carmelita Jeter, the winner in 10.92 seconds, and second-place Tianna Madison. Spokeswoman Jill Geer said she didn’t know when a decision would be reached.

Originally, Tarmoh was declared the third-place finisher and the official scoring said she had edged training partner Felix by 0.0001 seconds. But the results were reviewed, and after a lengthy delay, the dead heat was announced.

In swimming, ties are settled with swim-offs between the two deadlocked opponents. Track has tiebreaking procedures for many of its events, as well, but this is a special case for which there is no written solution — a tie for the last spot on the Olympic team.

The USATF said in a release that two cameras are used to determine photo-finishes, one on the outside of the track and another on the inside.

In Saturday’s race, the image from the outside camera was inconclusive for determining the finish because both runners’ arms obscured their torsos.

The torso position is used to determine the finish.

The image from the inside camera, shot at 3,000 frames per second, was analyzed by timers and referees, who declared the tie.

Tarmoh was ecstatic right after the race, believing she finally eclipsed the sprinter she strives to keep up with every day in practice. She was even carrying around an American flag, which is handed to the Olympians.

Soon after, word began to leak out that Tarmoh’s spot wasn’t as secure as she thought.

In another corner of the venue, Felix was trying to come to terms with the idea she wasn’t going to represent the U.S. in the 100. Asked what was going through her mind, Felix simply said, "Disappointment. That’s the only thing."

Felix, who chose the 100 over the 400 as her second event, does have a backup plan. Her is signature event is the 200, which will be held next week. Felix is one of the favorites to finish in the top three. Tarmoh also is declared for the 200.

"The 200 has been my focus this year," Felix said, when she still thought she had finished fourth. "But I can’t lie. I was really hoping that it would come together in the 100."

Elsewhere, Lolo Jones leaned at the finish line to earn the third and final Olympic spot in the 100 hurdles by 0.04 seconds. Dawn Harper won in 12.73. Tyson Gay made it through his first 100 heat cleanly, while LaShawn Merritt, Jeremy Wariner and Sanya Richards-Ross all advanced in the 400.